Jason’s Archives: Phoned for the Holidays

Apparently I set the bar pretty high with my article last week, so if you were looking forward to me beating the odds and coming up with something even better, you’re going to leave disappointed. I am on vacation for the holidays and even though the QS management team said they’d understand if we didn’t post an article this week, I feel compelled to write something.

I won’t be using this space to editorialize like I always do (I’ll be back to my same old tricks next week, however) but I will provide some tidbits about the GP and two newly spoiled cards. That should give you something to read on your phone while locked away in your bedroom to get away from your relatives for even half an hour because for the love of God there is a reason you don’t see those people all year.

This won’t be my typical screed, but it won’t be a blank space either. You readers were nice this year, so you deserve a little something in your stockings. I present to you “Jason’s Archives: Phoned-in Edition.”

More Gatecrash Spoilers

I was a good boy this year. Twelve months ago I lost my job and spent an entire year value trading at GPs, flipping collections, writing and speculating. While I made money at it, I decided to be responsible and get a real job again even if it cuts into speculating time this year (unless I sacrifice sleeping, something I haven’t ruled out yet). In my articles on this site and Gathering Magic, I tried to bring the community together and encouraged everyone to use social media more effectively to improve as players and speculators. I tried my best to be a good ambassador for the finance community and made some real headway.

Since I was a good boy, I was really enthusiastic when I learned about a Simic card “accidentally” inserted in a booster pack and opened at a draft.

Son of a...

So it looks like evolve is similar to graft — great for Vorthos fans and a bitter disappointment for those of us who wanted Simic to be a real guild and merfolk to be competitive. Fluxmage seems durdly, overcosted, inconsistent and generally less than the good little boys and girls from guild Simic were hoping for.

Seriously?

Ugh. A bad Lorescale Coatl, but printed at rare. At least Lorescale got a counter every turn. If you were relying on your four-mana 1/1 without hexproof or shroud to draw you cards, you may be disappointed to find it long dead by the time you can cast another creature.

It’s possible that other evolve creatures will be efficient beaters less prone to durdling. Of course an ever-growing beatstick certainly lends itself to the green slice of the color pie, which means Naya could benefit more than Bant. It’s all conjecture at this point, but in light of the two “flagship” cards Wizards saw fit to spoil, I’m not holding out much hope for the tape deck.

I’d love for you to tell my why I’m wrong. Hit me up in the comments, the forums (fora?), on Twitter, Facebook or e-mail. I’d love to be wrong about this.

Another Event in Indianapolis? Has It Been Two Weeks Already?

Despite having a brother I don’t mind visiting who lives fewer than four hours from the Indianapolis Convention Center, I had to miss this GP. Said brother is visiting relatives with me and I couldn’t skip Christmas so here I am hearing about the GP second hand.

While I have a habit of not mentioning Limited Grands Prix, the coverage is worth reading if only because the top eight was stacked.

I couldn’t find any published decklists from other events so if you haven’t read up on the GP coverage, go ahead. It’s well worth it.

“Deck” The Halls

Yeah, you like that? You like that pun? I got puns for days.

Still worth more than Search the City.

Jerein from Reddit said his girlfriend (yea, like we believe Magic players have those) made these festive ornaments to ring in the Yuletide. Is that an idiom? “Ring in the Yuletide?” It is now. I haven’t been linking much stuff from Reddit lately but these were too good not to share. Jerein says his girlfriend tolerates him playing Magic, and he wants to win her over with these. Could work! Christmas ornaments are well documented “gateway decorations” and if he plays his cards right, maybe there is a mox in her future. God luck, Jerein!

Go Spend Some Time with Your Family or Friends

That’s enough of being antisocial. Go have a beer with your Dad, eat some cookies or show your cousin’s hot friend your new mistletoe belt buckle. Whether you’re a Christian, Jew, Muslim … whatever group of people celebrates Kwanzaa, or an annoying militant atheist who refuses to celebrate Christmas despite it being awesome, this is the happiest time of the year for most people. Enjoy the time you have with your family and I hope the New Year finds you happy and healthy.

Jason Alt is a value trader and writer. He is Quiet Speculation's self-appointed web content archivist and co-captain of the interdepartmental dodgeball team. He enjoys craft microbrews and doing things ironically. You may have seen him at magic events; he wears black t-shirts and has a beard and a backpack so he's pretty easy to spot. You can hear him as co-host on the Brainstorm Brewery podcast or catch his articles on Gatheringmagic.com. He is also the Community Manager at BrainstormBrewery.com and writes the odd article there, too. Follow him on Twitter @JasonEAlt unless you don't like having your mind blown.